Weighing just 10,000 lb fully equipped, a new low-body aluminum flatdeck trailer offers up to nine and a half feet of cargo space above the deck while staying under the 13.5 ft height limit. That’s equal to 612 additional cubic feet of cargo space, says the manufacturer, Damsen Fabrication of Philipsburg, Que.

When equipped with 22.5-in. low-profile tires and a 44-in. fifth wheel, the deck height is just 48 in. above the ground at the nose, 45-46 in. at the rear. Spec the truck with 18-in. wheels, and you’ve got a deck height of just 43 in. The trailer has a 1.5 in. camber just slightly ahead of centre.

Key to the low deck height at the nose are the 4-in. thick, patent-pending, longitudinally extruded aluminum deck sections in the gooseneck. They extend from the nose back to beyond the front section of the deep-channel frame. They have a honeycomb interior, and they’re joined by slotted channels and welded for additional strength.

Crossmembers aren’t necessary here because engineers have used laterally arranged extruded deck sections with the same slotted and welded seams. The underside of the deck is clean, improving aerodynamics to some extent and reducing damage potentially caused by tire blowouts. Still, the trailer is rated for 60,000 lb on 48-in. centers. Damsen says this trailer can manage a 55,000-lb payload with a typical tractor spec. 

Standard equipment includes 23,000-lb Hendrickson Intraax air suspension, Holland Mark V landing gear, and LED lighting. Options include fixed or sliding extruded-aluminum strap winches, aluminum tool box, and assorted underslung carriers.